The invention relates to an apparatus, and a method of using the apparatus, for the manufacture of a filling material in the form of plastics sheet elements of individual pieces of sheet for use as a filling in pillows, duvets and the like, the sheet elements being manufactured by separation of a web of sheet. The apparatus comprises a housing in which a drum roller is rotated, with loosely hanging knives mounted on the drum, a screen extending at a distance from the outermost path of the knives, through which screen the pieces of sheet are sucked out.
Filling material of this type, comprising small sheet elements of wavy shape, is very suited as a filling in bedclothes, etc., since the material forms a filling mass which is suitably soft and resilient, and which has suitable insulating properties.
This provides the advantage that duvets, pillows, etc. may be washed at relatively high temperatures, which ensures a good hygiene in contrast to feather filling from poultry, which does not tolerate relatively high temperatures.
Previously known fillings are preferably manufactured by cutting up a layer of sheet material and deforming this material between for instance two rollers.
An example of such a manufacture of plastics sheet elements is known from EP 0 476 012. The drawback of this method is that it is very slow, and that the manufacturing capacity is poor. To this should be added a relatively large consumption of energy, and the low possibilities of switching the method to the generation of elements having a variety of sizes and shapes.
An example of a method and a hammer mill for the recovery of plastics sheet with a view to chopping the sheet to small pieces which may be re-used after cleaning of dust and similar impurities, is known from JP 2003 001128 A.
This method and hammer mill solely serve to chop the sheet into smaller pieces which, however, are not suitable for use as a filling material. This is due partly to the relatively thick sheet material which is chopped, and partly to the structure of the hammer mill with relatively long knives, which chop the sheet by a combined beating and cutting action. Therefore, the material will be chopped into small pieces which lack the ability to keep a distance to adjacent sheet elements. Thus, softness and insulation will be lacking when this material is used as a filling in pillows and the like.